“As to the methods there may be a million and then some, but principles are few. The man who grasps principles can successfully select his own methods. The man who tries methods, ignoring principles, is sure to have trouble.” So remarked Ralph Waldo Emerson, and this idea nicely echoes training for rugby. There are a million ways to train to become a better rugby player. No two programs are alike but the good ones are all united by their observance of sound principles. Perhaps the most fundamental principle of training for rugby is this: you must be strong.

Strength is simply the capacity of the body to apply force against resistance. This resistance takes many forms, including one's own body mass, opposition players, the ball and gravity. Simply put, the better your ability to apply force, the faster you will run, the higher you will jump and the harder you will hit. Not only this, but you will also reduce your risk of non-contact injury, improve your endurance and be able to impress members of the opposite sex with your Herculean feats. To say that strength is important for rugby is the understatement of the year.

So how do we get strong? Get lifting! To develop strength, you must regularly engage is some form of resistance training. This resistance can be your bodyweight, barbells, dumbbells, kettlebells, bands; I've even watched a man on Youtube train with an iron drain that he picked out of a skip! Just work hard and make sure you are pushing your body outside of it's comfort zone. Below is a quick whole body routine to get you started. Note that the exercises are grouped by movement patterns- training in this fashion ensures that no one muscle group is neglected and the whole body can be trained in a time efficient manner. Start off with 2-3 sets of 10-15 repetitions, resting 1-3 minutes between sets. The next time you repeat the session try to add 3-6% load to each exercise.

Knee dominant exercise- goblet squat: